Latest drug addict loons.

[MSimon]

http://www.eurad.net/en/news/consumptio ... FRnMYs.ips

Let us see. 33,000/5,000,000 = .66% Doesn't seem like a real big problem to me. I'll bet alcohol is a much, much worse problem for them. And a 15% a year increase? That is in the noise level at those rates. Might just be sampling error.

In any case the US is going in a different direction. A less socialist one. You are against socialism aren't you? Well at least you say so. I'm not convinced given your impulses on this question.

But I'm not against jail guards going on welfare. To help them through tough times caused by bad life choices. Heh. Maybe they will choose better the next chance they get. If they do get another one. The kind of job experience they got does not travel well.

========

OK. I looked further. The rise was in registered addicts. So it is real. But the overdose deaths are entirely preventable with legal supplies of known dose and purity plus antidotes freely available. It seems like their policy of restriction isn't working well. The Swiss with a relatively unrestricted policy seem to do better. Zero overdose deaths. It is difficult to argue with zero.

[paperburn1]

You are correct zero is hard to argue against, but unfortunately it only took 30 seconds on the Internet to find out the death rates are not zero. They are 3 to 400 per annual and the only reason they dropped that low according to the Swiss government was they taught first responders and families of addicts drug users how to intervene in an overdose and supplied them with the necessary medical knowledge and medicines to save their lives.
The other thing I found ironic was that two dolphins in a Swiss waterpark died of a heroin overdose given by partiers at a rave held at that same waterpark. Unfortunately dolphins to not respond to the treatment given to overdosed heroin users and providing them with a painful suffering death

[choff]

The thing about Portugal is that they've liberalized the drug laws at about the same time that the economy along with the rest of the EU went straight down the crapper driving up mass youth unemployment, it affects the results. As for the drug war being no longer affordable, I blame the fractional reserve debt based money system, (along with causing the mass unemployment). If the government switched to a credit based currency they could afford to run the drug war debt free forever( not that I actually endorse doing so per se, the focus should be on arresting money launderers, corrupted politicians and officials).

[MSimon]

You are correct zero is hard to argue against, but unfortunately it only took 30 seconds on the Internet to find out the death rates are not zero. They are 3 to 400 per annual and the only reason they dropped that low according to the Swiss government was they taught first responders and families of addicts drug users how to intervene in an overdose and supplied them with the necessary medical knowledge and medicines to save their lives.
The other thing I found ironic was that two dolphins in a Swiss waterpark died of a heroin overdose given by partiers at a rave held at that same waterpark. Unfortunately dolphins to not respond to the treatment given to overdosed heroin users and providing them with a painful suffering death

Well thank you. I had read an article the other day that said zero. I was misinformed.

So evidently there is no perfect solution. All that is possible is getting rid of organized crime.

[MSimon]

http://www.economist.com/blogs/democrac ... and-heroin

Switzerland and the Netherlands pioneered this "Heroin Assisted Treatment" (HAT) approach in the 1990s, and both countries adopted it as national policy in the 2000s. Heroin use has steadily declined since; by the 2000s the Dutch incidence of new heroin users had fallen to essentially zero, and the aging population of addicts from the 1970s and '80s continues to shrink. The average age of Dutch heroin users rose from 34 in 1997 to 45 in 2009.

Decriminalisation of marijuana use has also played a role in shrinking Dutch heroin use, since it separates the use of cannabis from the use of harder, more restricted drugs. HAT trials have since been run in Spain, Britain, Germany and Canada. The evidence consistently shows that HAT drastically reduces heroin-related crime, since addicts don't need to steal to get money for their fix, and it slashes heroin-related deaths and HIV infection, since addicts are shooting up under medical supervision.

More interestingly, HAT is also correlated with lower overall heroin use. This is in part because free government heroin tends to drive out private-sector providers. Most addicts will end up shooting up in safe rooms monitored by public-health staff, where they will be encouraged to enroll in a treatment programme or, if they fail or refuse treatment, simply receive free heroin. This gradually erodes the market for dealing heroin for profit; as they say in the tech world, you can't compete with free. The result is what you see in the Netherlands: the slow disappearance of heroin use.

[hanelyp]

... fractional reserve debt based money system ... credit based currency ...

What is the practical difference in how those monetary bases work?

[choff]

With the current system, when the government needs money to fund the drug war and tax revenue is insufficient, they raise funds via the sale of interest bearing bonds and treasuries. The main customers of said securities are banks, who create the money they purchase these securities with out of thin air! The interest payments keep right on compounding over the decades until the tax rates are doubled or tripled and most government revenue goes to interest payments. This depresses the economy causing increased misery and drug addiction. What some national governments at different times in different places have done instead, was to simply print the money and spend it, in essence, instead of the banks creating money out of thin air the government does it. Bankers will tell you this will cause inflation, but if you really think about it, what system will print more money, the one where you have to constantly print more and more to cover the compound interest payments, or the one where you don't. From the banks point of view, they will of course prefer a system where the government and tax payer works for them over a system that doesn't need them, keeping in mind these guys also launder drug money. The other important point would be that the created money must be spent productively or you will have inflation, think Rhodesia. The U.S. paid for the war of independence from Britain largely with colonial script, and even with British counterfeiting the war debt was paid off by the 1830's. The British borrowed all the money used to fund the fight against the war of independence and it took them to the 1920's to pay it off. You might also want to search on Bank of N. Dakota, Guernsey Island banking after the Napoleonic wars, the Bradbury Pound, Social Credit, Major Douglas.

[MSimon]

Drug taking as a counter to a deficiency: viewtopic.php?f=8&t=5689

I believe I have been saying this for a few years. To be soundly hooted down. Well. There is now evidence. NIH evidence. A takeaway from one NIH study (linked at the above link):

Further research and especially, clinical trials will further demonstrate the usefulness of medical cannabis. As legal barriers fall and scientific bias fades this will become more apparent.

Persecuting people for a deficiency disease is not nice. In fact it is criminal.

It is the Prohibitionists who are the real criminals. Heh.

And of the two parties it is the Republicans who are the most criminal. Repent.

[GIThruster]

"This amount of Delta-9-THC in Brown's blood was more than twice the amount that in Washington State--where marijuana is legal--would allow someone to be arrested for driving under the influence."

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/bar ... hael-brown

[williatw]

Cops Beat Man & 7-Month Pregnant Wife then Deleted the Video, But it Survived on the Cloud

Denver, CO — The Denver police department has been accused of using excessive force after a video, which they allegedly deleted, survived on the cloud and was turned into FOX 31.

The incident started as two officers approached David Nelson Flores, who was in his vehicle with his seven-and-a-half-months pregnant wife and their child, to shake him down after suspecting him of being in possession of a substance deemed illegal by the state.

Upon their approach, officers said they saw Flores put a white sweat sock in his mouth. Because the US is involved in an immoral war on drugs, this ‘sock in mouth’ move apparently gave the officers the right to yank Flores out of his car and proceed to pummel the man on the asphalt.

According to the police report however, a pair of plain clothes officers “assisted” suspect David Nelson Flores out of his car and they all “fell to the ground.”

The pummeling was for Flores’ own good, according to the police report. They bashed in his face and head so he wouldn’t “choke.”

At the moment the officers began struggling with Flores on the ground, Levi Frasier was driving by and pulled over his van to get a better look at the situation. At first, Frasier says, the undercover cops asked for his assistance in subduing Flores.

But Frasier said before he could react, backup arrived and they told him to get back.

That’s when Frasier turned on the camera.

Amazingly enough, as officers were involved in this *life threatening* situation, one of them had the wherewithal to warn his fellow officers about them being filmed. The word “camera!” can be heard shortly after officer Charles “Chris” Jones IV began beating in the face of David Flores.

Flores was struck six times by Jones after he yells, “Spit the drugs out! Spit the drugs out!” Like we said earlier, these six strikes about the face and head of Flores were for Flores’ well being, according to police.

According to police reports, Jones’ reasoning for the punches were twofold:
Trying to retrieve what he believed was a bag of heroin from the suspect’s mouth (and preventing Flores from choking)
Fear that one of the other officer’s arms was injured after being trapped beneath the suspect’s body

After seeing her husband’s head bouncing off of the pavement over and over again, Flores’ wife, Mayra Lazos-Guerrero, was scared that he may die, and began begging the police officers in Spanish to stop beating her husband.

Naturally Jones feared for his safety as the seven-and-a-half-months pregnant woman approached the beating zone, so he sweeps 25-year-old Lazos-Guerroro’s legs out from under her. The obviously pregnant woman then falls hard onto her stomach and face, as she begins to scream in agony.
“She was screaming like, ‘What are you doing. Let him go! Let him go! Stop hurting him! What are you doing?,’” Frasier said. “She was just concerned for him. You could clearly hear that and as she got closer.”

After the police-on-pregnant woman violence subsided, Frasier says that’s when the Denver police officers became interested in his Samsung Tablet.



Fraiser told FOX 31 that officers on scene threatened him with arrest, demanded he turn over all photos and videotape to them and then seized his tablet over his objections.

“When he took it, I said, ‘Hey! You can’t do that. You need a warrant for that!’ and he said, ‘What program did you take the video with? Where is that?’” Frasier said.

He said police ignored his objections and dug through his personal photos without obtaining a court order.

“The first officer that comes up to ask me about my witness statement brings me to the police car and says we could do this the easy way or we could do this the hard way,” Fraser said. “It was taken as ‘You can either cooperate and give us what we want or we’re going to incarcerate you.’”
According to Frasier, when he got back his tablet, the video was gone. “I couldn’t believe it. My heart dropped. I know I just shot that video, like it’s not on there now?” Frasier said.

Frasier said it’s “possible” both he and the police officer who looked through his tablet “missed seeing” the clip inside his files.

However, Frasier said he suspects, in reality, the clip was deleted either with intention or by mistake.

When he got back home that evening, Fraiser synced his tablet with his electronic cloud and within a few moments, the video reappeared.

“It was very well known that the video was shot and things were done on the video that shouldn’t be leaked out, that it would be bad for the reputations of the police officers,” Frasier said.

Denver police Cmdr. Matt Murray, pointed out that Frasier did in fact fill out a witness statement and did not report seeing officers do anything inappropriate. However, filling out a complaint with the ones who are threatening you is like voicing your discontent with a murderous kidnapper who is about to let you go, it’s just something you don’t do.

Frasier actually concurs, and said he did sign the witness statement, but did so “under duress.”

“It was survival mode. It was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to make it out of here. Not going to go to jail today for something I didn’t have anything to do with,’” Frasier said.

Despite his friends telling him to delete the video for fear that the officers would seek revenge, Fraiser did the courageous thing and submitted it to FOX31, and for this Frasier deserves credit.

According to court records, the severely injured Flores was brought to the hospital, treated for his injuries, and now faces a charge of resisting arrest and two felony drug charges.

Mayra Lazos-Guerrero faces charges for obstruction, drugs and child abuse because there was a child in the car when this arrest went down. Guerrero was also allegedly caught with drug paraphernalia in her purse.

http://thefreethoughtproject.com/cops-b ... ved-cloud/

[williatw]

A police body camera could have changed the aftermath of the Ferguson shooting



Police officers stand out side a Walgreens as demonstrators protest the shooting death of Michael Brown

One salutary effect that the shooting to death of Michael Brown by Ferguson, MO police Office Darren Wilson will be the adoption of body cameras for police officers, according to a Wednesday story in the Houston Chronicle. Houston may well speed up the process of equipping officers with body cams, which will take a year and about $7 million dollars. The cameras would have a similar purpose that dash cams that many police vehicles are now equipped with.

Dash cams, as CNN recently noted, record interactions between police officers and citizens during traffic stops. They can provide crucial video recorded evidence when such stops turn ugly. The Ferguson Police Department was just beginning to adopt dash cams as well as cameras mounted on police officer body armor, a process hampered by a lack of funds.

One of the crucial points of contention surrounding the shooting of Michael Brown concerns the behavior of the victim leading up to the fatal shot. Some witnesses alleged that Brown was either running away with his back to Officer Wilson or had his hands up in the mode of surrender when he was fatally shot. Wilson and other witnesses counter that Brown was charging Wilson with the clear intent of tackling and perhaps killing him.

The forensic evidence and the fact that several of the witnesses recanted their story of Brown trying to surrender led the grand jury to clear Wilson of wrong doing. Nevertheless, many people, invested in the meme of a racist cop gunning down a black youth for no reason, refuse to accept the conclusions of the grand jury. Hence, racial animus is on the rise, as well as street violence and political posturing.

Clearly if Officer Wilson had been wearing a body camera, there would be no doubt about what happened leading up to the shooting of Michael Brown. People would know whether Brown was trying to surrender or was attacking Officer Wilson because it would be recorded for all to see. The video evidence would not lessen the tragedy, but it might have tamped down on the anger and bitterness that followed.

http://www.examiner.com/article/a-polic ... b_articles

[mvanwink5]

It really seems like the police departments are slower than slow here. I mean cameras are not a new thing... at all. It isn't a new idea, a third grader has probably suggested it multiple times...per day. Of course it might also be embarrassing. Also, I wonder how much police unions have had a hand in delaying this (why would I even think that?). After all the public is filming it, in color, Hi-def.

Another question was why were there no blacks on the Ferguson force? None. What I heard was that black police officers can command higher salary and better positions and that is not offered in Ferguson, so lower paid whites got that position. A lot of things don't add up, but that is the way with gubbermant, politicians, bureaucrats, and cronies.

And, the media. Is there no shred of decency in the crooked media? "Hands Up," "My son would never do that!" "He was surrendering!" And the crooked media never calls these people on their bald lies, too much money to be made with a good o'l night time burn the town down riot!

What planet do we live on? What am I missing, is something in the water that I am not drinking that all these people that voted these crooked politicians in are drinking, and who is watching the lying crooked media that can't put 1+1 to get 2 ? I read the blogs and think, gracious, they are all trolls, surely they can't be graduates of modern day public high school, graduates from 'free,' quality, Gubbermant provided schools?

Maybe it is in the air, or food...? No. I got it, these are demented replicants! Or, its a 'reality' TV show, and the actors are just following a Stephen King script.

[hanelyp]

It's only recently that technology has made body cameras practical. But the time has come for them to be a standard part of police equipment.

[Diogenes]

What planet do we live on? What am I missing, is something in the water that I am not drinking that all these people that voted these crooked politicians in are drinking, and who is watching the lying crooked media that can't put 1+1 to get 2 ? I read the blogs and think, gracious, they are all trolls, surely they can't be graduates of modern day public high school, graduates from 'free,' quality, Gubbermant provided schools?

Maybe it is in the air, or food...? No. I got it, these are demented replicants! Or, its a 'reality' TV show, and the actors are just following a Stephen King script.

Well if you ask Simon it's the "war on drugs" which is responsible for all of it.


If you ask me, I will say it is systemic and cyclic, but the single most important factor behind it is probably money. Too much of it, and the wrong kind of it.


If the nation wasn't so prosperous, much of this nonsense wouldn't get very far. We simply wouldn't put up with it. Likewise, if the Democrats weren't creating so much fake money (borrowed from the future) and then using it to bribe idiots and cronies to keep them in power, much of this nonsense would never have happened.


I'm going to post a thread that may very well go a long way in conveying some of what i'm trying to say. I didn't write it, but I recognize it as being a pretty good explanation for what's wrong with much of our society nowadays.

[Diogenes]

I think it's too soon to draw a correlation, but since the Pro-Pot crowd was in such a hurry to draw one before, I don't feel bad about giving them some of their own medicine.






Pot-Positive Traffic Fatalities Up 100% in Colorado

The data coming out of Colorado is exhibit A on why voters should reject legalization efforts. Even the Democratic governor of Colorado, John Hickenlooper, said that legalizing marijuana in Colorado was “reckless.” As I have written at Heritage, pot-positive traffic fatalities have gone up 100 percent since voters legalized pot in Colorado. This is true despite the fact that overall traffic fatalities in Colorado have gone down since 2007.

http://cnsnews.com/commentary/cully-sti ... 0-colorado